Chapter 3

Wilbur was left speechless by my question. He deflated like a popped balloon, his face flushing bright red, unable to get a single word out.

Even Agatha was choked by the evidence I threw at her.

She opened her mouth, but it took ages before she managed to squeeze out a feeble excuse. "She... she's your sister-in-law. You should just give in to her..."

Here we go again. It was always the same excuse.

I looked at the two people I used to think were closest to me, and any warmth I had left for them vanished.

I put my phone away, clinging to a shred of hope as I glanced at Wilbur, but he just kept his head down.

I was done. My heart was completely numb.

I turned around, picked up Stacie, who'd woken up and was softly whimpering in bed, and gently patted her back.

"Don't cry, baby. Mommy's here," I said softly to her.

Then, right in front of them, I walked back into the room and slammed the door with a bang, locking it behind me.

Leaving them, and my old life, on the other side of the door.

The next morning, I was woken up by my phone blowing up with notifications.

Sure enough, Maxine was putting on her classic performance in the "Harding Family" group chat.

She flooded the chat with long, dramatic paragraphs, pouring her heart out, crying and ranting about how I was making a big deal out of nothing, how I didn't care about her dignity, and how I'd embarrassed her in front of all the relatives.

She painted herself as the innocent victim, a well-meaning sister-in-law who got ruthlessly humiliated by me, her younger sister-in-law.

She even not-so-subtly hinted that she'd scrimped and saved to buy Stacie a gold bracelet, but maybe it just wasn't good enough for someone like me, with my fancy corporate job.

With a few words, she made me out to be a materialistic, mean-spirited gold-digger.

Her close allies, Aunt Rosie and Aunt Tasha, immediately jumped in to back her up.

[Maxine, don't cry. We all know you meant well,] Aunt Rosie said.

[Exactly! Monica really went too far this time. How could she embarrass you in front of everyone like that?] Aunt Tasha chimed in.

[Young people these days forget their place after they become a little successful. They don't know how to respect their elders,] Aunt Rosie added.

Watching them twist the truth like that, I didn't even get mad anymore. I thought it was ridiculous.

Arguing with people who weren't even in the same league as me was the biggest waste of my time and energy.

I didn't bother replying at all.

I got up, fed Stacie, and changed her diaper.

Then I dug out the audio recording I'd made at the dinner table yesterday.

It caught every word Maxine came clean with, admitting the bracelet "was probably a mix-up at the store."

I packaged up the audio, plus crystal-clear shots of the fake receipt from every angle, and sent the whole thing to Great Uncle Simon.

Great Uncle Simon, a retired teacher, was the oldest and most fair-minded person in the family. He was always the voice of reason.

I just laid out the facts as simply as possible, and attached a few screenshots of Maxine's old shade-throwing posts about me.

In the end, I told him, [Great Uncle Simon, it's not about the bracelet itself. What really gets to me is being treated this way and blamed for things I didn't do, over and over again.]

Once I'd sent everything, I set my phone aside and started soothing Stacie, acting as if nothing had happened at all.

About half an hour later, after the family group chat had been quiet for ages, Great Uncle Simon finally spoke up.

He said, [Us elders shouldn't get involved in the younger generation's affairs. But after seeing everything today, I feel I have to say a few words.

[Giving gifts is about thoughtfulness, not obligation. It should be genuine, and come from the heart.

[We're family. We ought to be honest with each other. Pretending or putting on airs is pointless.

[Monica's a good kid. She's worked hard to build her own career, and that's no small feat. Maxine, you should be more understanding.

[Honesty matters, especially with family.]

Great Uncle Simon's words were gentle. He didn't call anyone out, but every word landed like a slap to Maxine.

And that last line about honesty? That was the final nail in the coffin.

The tide in the group chat turned in a flash.

All those lurking relatives who'd been quietly watching the drama finally started speaking up.

[Uncle Simon's got a point. Being honest is what matters most in a family.]

[Yeah, faking a receipt is really crossing the line.]

[Monica's got it rough, working and raising a kid at the same time.]

Maxine never expected me to have the audio and that I'd go straight to Great Uncle Simon.

She completely lost it, not even bothering to play the victim anymore.

She blew up the group chat with a bunch of one-minute voice messages, her voice sharp and grating as she started ranting and cursing me out.